Araneus diadematus was announced The European Spider of the YEAR for 2010!!!

I point this out because The Mrs posted a photo (a FANTASTIC photo) of a female Garden Spider resting in the center of her orb at the back of our house! This kindled fond memories of my Advanced Biology class my senior year in high school when one of my projects was the overwinter nurturing of an Araneus diadematus egg sac. One early spring morning I stopped into the biology lab and my corner of the lab was COVERED in a mob of tiny little spiderlings! I collected as many as I could and carried them outside to a courtyard. Many opted to stay inside, where they and their offspring happily lived for many generations… much to the dismay of the school janitorial staff and arachnophobes alike.

Since this IS on the internet, what is a photo posting without a little bit of spider porn, right?

Courtesy Spiders.us

Araneus diademus male genitalia….

And a quick physical update: My left eye is slowly improving, I was actually able to read a WORD last week with it. My ophthalmologist was very encouraging at my last checkup, and said I may not need surgery to reverse the blindness… YAY!!!

And at the other end of my breaking down body, my plantar fasciitis has all but disappeared, thanks to steroid shots in the heel and ongoing stretching…!

So now I am waiting for my health condition to return to normal so I can get back to my normal routine…. and stop surfing spider porn…

You’re a spider exploiter! hahahaha I love spiders, except the one on that web… we could shake hands, er, legs. He’s a big one! I have spiders in my house and I tell them as long as they stay on their side and NO ONE DARE TO ENTER MY BEDROOM, then we can be friends.

Is there a 12 step program for us SE’s? 😀 The biggest spider I ever saw was a Bird Spider in New South Wales, Australia…. YIKES! Since we have only a very limited selection and population of poisonous spiders around here, I don’t get too anxious about having spider guests, although I usually scoop them up and take them outside where they are less likely to starve to death!

For the longest time the improvements seemed super minuscule,,, but more rapid now and starting to get back into my old rhythm and habits. Look forward to catching up on your blog!! I especially enjoy hunting orb spider webs in the early morning when it is dewy and slightly hazy!